Receptors behind leaf adaptation to long-term change

Now, Alistair Hetherington at the University of Bristol, UK, and an international team of scientists, including a researcher at King Saud University in Saudi Arabia, have identified unique gene networks that promote stomata closure in response to long-term changes in darkness, high carbon dioxide concentrations, decreased humidity, and exposure to the hormone abscisic acid (ABA).

They found that all four of these external stimuli modulated the expression of members of a family of ABA receptor molecules, with subtle differences in which specific ABA receptors were most important for each stimulus. Overall, the results showed that ABA is crucial as a central regulator in determining stomata sensitivity and behaviour in response to long-term environmental changes.

"Our findings represent new and fundamental insights into how plants adapt to a changing environment,” says Hetherington. “By revealing the intricate molecular details that underlie these responses, they open up new avenues for those seeking to breed crops that use water and nutrients more efficiently.”

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